最佳契合 (Perfect Match) – 十九瑶
Chapter 59
Midsummer is when the heat is at its worst.
There was a lot of shade from the vines in the little courtyard. He An sat beneath it, fanning Linglan with a woven fan while listening to the lonesome chirping of cicadas.
As the weather got hotter, the swing cradle was switched out for a bamboo mat that moved slowly in the cool shade. Linglan was sound asleep. Her little blanket covered her belly and showed off her two pink feet. Her mouth was slightly open, and the corners of her lips curled up, exactly the right way to smile during the time she had a dream about milk cake.
It was too hot for Liubailiu, so he sneaked up on the cradle to get some air from the fan. Just as he was about to step inside, his tail carelessly touched his little master’s foot. Linglan felt itchy and kicked her leg down unconsciously in her dream.
The big, fluffy dumpling bounced around in shame until he was picked up by gentle hands and put in his arms.
The fan was tilted a bit, and the light breeze blew the cat’s thin whiskers. After getting what he wanted, Liubailiu felt completely at ease. He lay on He An’s knees, nodded off, and snored.
Coolness finally arrived, and the waves of bougainvillea blossoms among the vine leaves transformed into a mesmerizing display. As dark clouds roll in, a faint rumble of thunder announces the impending arrival of rain.
He An looked up.
The wind had blown open the green leaves, and he could see the cumulus clouds curled above the roof tiles. He could also see the empty guest room on the second floor, which startled him.
It has been a month.
Exactly a month has passed since Zheng Feiluan left without saying goodbye.
The days are now calm again, and everyone’s routine is back to normal, just like last year’s summer.
Since Zheng Feiluan wasn’t around, his native glands went into rest, and he stopped taking medication to keep himself healthy;
Dai Xiao got a part-time job as a photographer and spent the whole day traveling to the film and TV city in the north of town, where he made a lot of money;
Cranberry Pastry House was then run by Cheng Xiu. The business was tiny and well-equipped, but it had a lot of small issues. Although it was just a pastime for Zheng Feiluan, Cheng Xiu felt a heavy burden from it. Luckily, he had years of experience in the business world and had followed Zheng Feiluan around, so he wasn’t short on knowledge either. There was a painful adjustment period, but he eventually got the hang of it;
The Olive Inn, on the other hand, offers more reasonably priced, high-quality breakfasts and has less street noise during the night. The guest rooms’ layout has been meticulously improved under Zheng Feiluan’s guidance. As a result, the occupancy rate and book counts have been improving significantly.
Actually, things are better for them now than they were last year.
However, there are some things that he hasn’t gotten used to.
When He An visited the pastry house, he noticed that the barista had an unfamiliar face. The new barista will politely nod and ask what he’d like to drink, but he won’t leave the bar, pull out a chair, quietly beg him to stay a little longer, and serve him a cup of fragrant hot cocoa without striking up a conversation.
There is no longer a soothing, caring look that follows him around and anticipates his every action.
In the past, Linglan’s milk cake was always made fresh when it arrived, served on a shallow plate, and sprinkled with chopped vanilla and strawberry dice.
And now?
Because Linglan was so greedy, He An went out and bought a whole carton from the pastry house. Despite using the same pastry chef and following an exact recipe, Linglan was unimpressed. She took a spoonful, tasted it, and then realized it was missing.
And…
And the July rains.
When it rains a lot in the middle of summer, flower buyers can easily get trapped. He An doesn’t get impatient easily. During rainy days, he used to enjoy holding daisies, smelling the wet grass, and waiting under the low roof for the rain to stop. As the rain hammered on the bluestone, he looked over the foggy curve in the alley and couldn’t shake the memory of the man who had stepped out from under an umbrella and drenched half of his arms.
The shade from Zheng Feiluan’s umbrella appears to be more dependable than the roof.
He clutched the bouquet tightly, feeling a bit flustered, as the rain splashed on his face.
In the evening, the family gathered in the living room to watch television. Dai Xiao and Cheng Xiu shared a room and had grown used to sitting together on the sofa. Meanwhile, Linglan and He An sat across from them. He’d never felt cramped before, but now he felt uneasy.
Dai Xiao and Cheng Xiu are known for their disputes, but even after the dust settles, they remain each other’s most trusted companions. When they’re together, nothing can stand in their way. Each day for the last six months, He An noticed their differences and watched as they got to know each other better.
Without meaning to, and without anyone noticing, it will go back to just the three of them at some point.
He An knows it all.
He just happened to have Zheng Feiluan with him at that time.
The alpha would join him and Linglan without saying much and not being annoying. He was willing to make small talk with him with just a glance, so there was a delicate balance between the four of them. He An had always thought that he would be closer to Cheng Xiu and Dai Xiao, but of course, that wasn’t the case.
Zheng Feiluan’s close protection appeared distant yet intimate in an unusual way.
His shadow is still there, even though he isn’t there physically anymore.
⋮
Rumble.
Outside the courtyard, distant thunder rolled across the sky, heavy clouds blocked the sun, a howling wind blew with more intensity, and sand and rocks were crashing onto the ground. When He An saw the heavy rain approaching, he put down the woven fan and carried Linglan inside.
The little girl is now one and a half years old. Her long eyebrows, plumpness, and hints of Zheng Feiluan are all noticeable.
He leaned down next to the bed and gently tapped her nose.
Every now and then, he’d have a dream in which Zheng Feiluan stormed into his room, pinned him down without giving him a reason, and ripped his pajamas to shreds. His eyes were dull and lifeless, but they were burning with desire.
He An’s mind was flooded with alpha pheromones at that moment, and the strong smell of blood woke him up just in time to see Zheng Feiluan’s wrist, which was dripping with blood and had new injuries on top of old ones that had gotten worse. The rope had torn off, leaving his skin and flesh stuck to it. The end was dripping with blood and swinging back and forth in front of his eyes like a pendulum.
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…
It turns out that the scene underneath the ribbon is not “style” at all.
Zheng Feiluan lied to him.
So, when did it all start?
On the edge of his fading mind, He An was looking for answers. As far as he could remember, it was in February of this year that he first noticed the uncontrolled pheromones in Zheng Feiluan’s room. Has Zheng Feiluan actually been this way for so long, tying himself up every time he sleeps?
He An suddenly gave up.
He was lying on his back under Zheng Feiluan and looked calm. He didn’t even move to press the alarm bell next to the bed. He surrendered to the other person’s grip on his shoulders and allowed him to turn his head, revealing the delicate nape of his neck.
He knew Zheng Feiluan had gone completely crazy, acting on his primitive instincts, and set on biting through his glands, but in the middle of his great panic, he felt relieved that he was about to be calmed down.
Bite down.
You win.
You prove love by exercising restraint.
What’s the point of acting out a fake vendetta against each other? You cause me a lot of pain, and I give you a lot of pain in return. We hurt and entangle each other. I don’t want the pain to keep going because I know how it feels to ask for more and not get it.
Zheng Feiluan, even though I might not be able to forgive you completely right now, I’m ready to let go of my resentment and start over.
As long as love is still there.
This thought, however, was short-lived and was lost in the thick darkness before it could be communicated.
After He An opened his eyes from his unconsciousness, he was told by Cheng Xiu that Zheng Feiluan had gone back to Yuanjiang. He was lying on the hospital bed by himself, hugging his knees, and staring at the white ceiling with a disappointed and blank expression.
⋮
A bolt of lightning struck through the rain clouds, and the snow outside the window became as bright as day and then as dark as night.
The thunder struck late, and heavy rain fell quickly, cooling the temperature by around seven to eight degrees.
The sound of thunder startled Linglan, who was only half conscious at the time. She slowly crawled into He An’s arms, tangling her curly hair, like a little snail looking for its shell. He kept patting her back over and over while watching her carefully, until the sound of rain fell less heavily and the sky got brighter.
After Linglan drifted off to sleep soundly, He An grabbed a dusty cotton bag from the cupboard.
After removing the cotton layers, a thin glass tube could be seen.
Within a wooden container, there is a two- or three-milliliter storage of a liquid that is as black as blood. When you hold it up to your nose, you can smell the sweet floral scent. The glass tube has a label on it with a line written in light blue ballpoint pen:
Pheromone Extraction Dilution: Omega Type-90795, Patient: He An.
He had used the last of the native pheromones to calm Linglan down after surgery. There were still a few milliliters left, which he had planned to keep as a remembrance, but it didn’t really matter if he did or not.
But at least it would matter to Zheng Feiluan.
He An took an umbrella and went outside. He went to the pharmacy in the rain to get a bottle of muscle-stimulating cream. Afterwards, he headed to the post office, where he carefully packed the glass tube and the cream, and attached a tiny card displaying just two words:
Your present.
He didn’t know the address of Zheng Feiluan’s private residence, so he filled in Jiusheng Twin Towers into the recipient column.
The package may be confiscated halfway and tossed into the dumpster if he’s not a relative, much less a business VIP, and Zheng Feiluan won’t ever get it. Whatever the case, this is the final act of kindness he can do for Zheng Feiluan.
⋮
Even after rain, summer’s heat remained the same.
Over the hot days, time seemed to stand still, allowing every passing second to go on forever.
He An ignored other matters and focused on running Olive Inn. His mind was racing, but he worked hard not to think about what might happen. For the rest of his life, he would have a hard time reaching his goals with his injured and weakened body. If Dai Xiao and Cheng Xiu’s relationship changes in the future, is it still appropriate for him to stay at Olive Inn for a long time?
If not, where can he go?
He didn’t have an answer.
Although Cheng Xiu saw that He An was depressed, he couldn’t see right through him. No matter how subtly he tried to ask, all he ever got in return was a smile and a whispered “It’s okay.”
He had Dai Xiao ask, but he still hadn’t gotten any response.
⋮
Sometime towards the end of July, things took a surprising turn. Someone new checked into the Olive Inn that day.
There was nothing strange about this.
People go to inns to rest, and they are always prepared to welcome and assist guests. Guests come and go every day, and even a patient person like He An has to deal with different kinds of strangers all day long.
However, this new guest stands out in some way.
He arrived early in the morning, and He An was holding Linglan as usual, standing on the curved stone arch bridge, watching the ducks. From far away to close, the suitcase’s wheels made a clattering sound as they rolled along the bluestone sidewalk alongside the river behind him.
He An prepared a polite smile and turned his head to look, but was taken aback.
This guest was a kind older gentleman, probably forty or fifty years old. He had a slim build, wore glasses with gold frames, and had small lines around the corners of his eyes. He stood there in the daylight, doing nothing at all, and his elegant bookishness was on full display.
When their eyes locked, he smiled naturally at He An, his eyes soft and filled with unusual affection and tenderness.
Looking at him made He An’s cheeks feel slightly warm, and he greeted him awkwardly, “H-hello, and welcome.”
“Hi there.”
With a smile on his face, he stepped forward and introduced himself, saying, “My name is Yan Ning. It’s good to meet you.”
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Translated and edited by janemoyu (04/07/24)
